To Whom It May Concern...
To Whom It May Concern... is the debut studio album by American hip hop group Freestyle Fellowship.[1] It was released on October 5, 1991.[1][2] The 30th anniversary reissue of To Whom It May Concern... received a nomination for Best Historical Album at the 65th Grammy Awards.[3]
| To Whom It May Concern... | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | October 5, 1991[1][2] | |||
| Genre | Hip hop | |||
| Length | 51:17 | |||
| Label | Sun Music | |||
| Producer |
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| Freestyle Fellowship chronology | ||||
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Critical reception
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [4] |
| Classic Material: The Hip-Hop Album Guide | favorable[5] |
| Exclaim! | favorable[6] |
| RapReviews.com | 10/10[7] |
| The New Rolling Stone Album Guide |  [8] |
Scott Thill of AllMusic gave the album 4.5 stars out of 5, calling it "a potent glimpse into the subcultural, conscientious side of Los Angeles hip-hop, one that would later be eclipsed by gangsta boogie from the likes of Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, and all the pretenders who followed in their wake."[4] Del F. Cowie of Exclaim! described it as "a mind-boggling collection of elastic rhymes, myriad flows and jazzy beats."[6]
Writing for Classic Material: The Hip-Hop Album Guide, Oliver Wang said, "the album stands as one of the most influential LPs ever released on the West Coast, the fire starter for practically the entire California underground movement in the 1990s and beyond."[5]
Track listing
| No. | Title | Lyrics | Music | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "We Are the Freestyle Fellowship" | Freestyle Fellowship | Freestyle Fellowship | 1:36 |
| 2. | "My Fantasy" | Aceyalone | Mathmattiks | 3:53 |
| 3. | "7th Seal" | Mikah 9 |
| 5:23 |
| 4. | "Let's Start Over" | Freestyle Fellowship | Freestyle Fellowship | 1:14 |
| 5. | "Sunshine Men" | J. Sumbi | All in All | 4:33 |
| 6. | "Physical Form" | P.E.A.C.E. | J. Sumbi | 3:49 |
| 7. | "120 Seconds" | Aceyalone | The Mighty O-Roc | 2:03 |
| 8. | "We Will Not Tolerate" | Freestyle Fellowship | Freestyle Fellowship | 1:46 |
| 9. | "Dedications" | Freestyle Fellowship | Freestyle Fellowship | 2:01 |
| 10. | "It's On" | Freestyle Fellowship | Freestyle Fellowship | 0:16 |
| 11. | "Sike" | Freestyle Fellowship | Freestyle Fellowship | 0:34 |
| 12. | "5 O'Clock Follies" | Mikah 9 | J. Sumbi | 5:56 |
| 13. | "Legal Alien" | J. Sumbi | All in All | 3:45 |
| 14. | "Convolutions" | Freestyle Fellowship | Freestyle Fellowship | 0:46 |
| 15. | "Jupiter's Journey" | Self Jupiter | Mathmattiks | 4:18 |
| 16. | "For No Reason" | P.E.A.C.E. | Mathmattiks | 3:14 |
| 17. | "Here I Am" | Aceyalone | Mathmattiks | 4:15 |
| 18. | "The Future?" | Freestyle Fellowship | Freestyle Fellowship | 1:32 |
| Total length: | 51:17 | |||
References
- Steiner, B.J. (October 5, 2013). "Today In Hip-Hop: Freestyle Fellowship Releases 'To Whom It May Concern…'". XXL. Retrieved May 21, 2017.
- Erwin, Jack (April 26, 2013). "The 30 Greatest Months in Rap History - 12. October 1991". Complex. Retrieved May 21, 2017.
- Turner-Williams, Jaelani (November 15, 2022). "Freestyle Fellowship Earns Grammy Nomination 30 Years After Their Debut Album". OkayPlayer. Retrieved November 27, 2022.
- Thill, Scott. "To Whom It May Concern... - Freestyle Fellowship". AllMusic. Retrieved May 21, 2017.
- Wang, Oliver (2003). "Freestyle Fellowship: To Whom It May Concern...". In Wang, Oliver (ed.). Classic Material: The Hip-Hop Album Guide. ECW Press. pp. 72–73.
- Cowie, Del F. (September 1999). "Freestyle Fellowship - To Whom It May Concern". Exclaim!. Retrieved May 21, 2017.
- Taylor, Patrick (February 19, 2008). "Freestyle Fellowship :: To Whom it May Concern... :: Beats and Rhymes". RapReviews.com. Retrieved May 21, 2017.
- Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian, eds. (2004). "Freestyle Fellowship". The New Rolling Stone Album Guide. Fireside. p. 312.
External links
- To Whom It May Concern... at Discogs (list of releases)